Monday, July 7, 2008

Maybe He Should Take It Easy For a Bit

Derrick Rose participated in the night practice of Saturday’s double sessions for Bulls’ summer-league mini-camp despite battling tendinitis in his right knee.

The No. 1 pick limped noticeably following the morning practice, his knee wrapped in ice, but vowed not to miss games at the Orlando Pro Summer League beginning Monday.

"I’ve been coming 90 minutes early every day to get treatment," Rose said. "I’ll be fine."

Has anyone see video of Rose running these past few days? He's pretty much hobbling up and down the court.

Rose said the condition dates to his one season at Memphis and developed for noble reasons.

"I was scared I wouldn’t have a good season, so I would stay in the gym for like four hours until I got tendinitis," he said. "Coach (John Calipari) had to tell the managers don’t let me in no more because I was tearing up my knees and I had to keep getting MRIs. I just wanted to prove people wrong and let them know that I was going to play hard. That’s just the way I think."

I'm very glad he's opposite of Michael Beasley in that he wants to spend every minute of his day maximizing his abilities, but shouldn't the kid be watched very closely at this point?

Judging from my posting nickname, you would think I would have a say in this, and here's my prognosis:

Let him play this week, but play him maybe a little less then you normally would if he wasn't hobbling around the court.

82 games is a long season, and there's plenty of time for him to adjust to playing in the league. While I think it's good that he goes out there and starts to get a feel for how high can he lob the alley-oop the lob for Tyrus, or how much listerine he should keep near him for Noah's breath, he has plenty of time.

If Paxson and Del Negro really don't want to burden him right away with lofty expectations, then there should be no need to push him during these meaningless games.

Another reason (from Wikipedia): Chronic overuse of tendons leads to microscopic tears within the collagen matrix, which gradually weakens the tissue.

Due to their highly specialised ultrastructure, low level of vascularization and slow collagen turnover, tendons and ligaments are very slow to heal if injured, and rarely regain their original strength. Partial tears heal by the rapid production of disorganized type-III collagen, which is weaker than normal tendon. Recurrence of injury in the damaged region of tendon is common.

If you try to push him too much, you run the risk of him getting tears in his knees. He's only 19, and he had to get a shitload of MRI's in college for this. Tears lead to time on the DL, and that leads to an even slower development then if he takes it easy and allows his tendons to strengthen.

I'm sure if you're like me, you're very excited to watch him play today. But let's not forget; there's plenty of time to enjoy Mr. Rose. He must continue to grow before he can blossom.

About Me

Getting To Know Your Editors/Drunks

About Dr. C:Dr. C is a graduate of Southern Illinois University. He spent 4 years there as a Sports Anchor/Director. After deciding he didn't want to cover rodeos working 50+ hours a week making 20K in Buttfuck, Montana he decided to return home to Chicago. Dr. C is a real nickname he goes by for claiming to have a Ph.D in bullshit. He can remember phone numbers from people he met 15 years yet couldn't tell you your name back to you after having been introduced. If he could be sponsored by anything in life, it would undoubtedly be Jack Daniels.

About Noce:Noce is a graduate of the University of Illinois. He was the sports editor there for the Daily Illini. As you may have guessed, he's a huge Bulls fan, and spends most of his day on Blog-A-Bull. Noce also enjoys Crab Rangoon. He will expand on this later when he's not lying in bed hungover at this moment.

About StalkingErinAndrews:Stalkingerinandrews wasted his money at the University of Illinois, attending for a few years but never earning a degree. He enjoys long tractor rides, barbecue grilling, and spending time with children. (His own brats, not someone else's.) He is a true homer, being a fan of most Chicago area teams, with the inclusion of the Illini being the obvious exception. He has to go now, his wife just said "Blah, blah, blah, get off that damn computer! I need blah, blah, blah."